By Ken Valenti

WESTPORT–Westport caterer Nikki Glekas is in line to take over concessions at Compo Beach, the Longshore Pavilion and the Halfway house on Longshore Golf Course – pending a series of three town meetings beginning with the Board of Finance on Monday night.

The town hopes to have the concession stands running by the unofficial start of summer.

“It would be amazing to have it open by Memorial Day,” First Selectman Kevin Christie said. 

The public has opportunities to provide input at the meetings and via email.

“Residents are encouraged to participate in the process by attending meetings and/or submitting comments,” the town said in an announcement.

Glekas, head of the Nikki Glekas Collective, will operate as NG Entertainment LLC. The town began searching for a new vendor earlier this year, after buying out the former concessionaire, Hook’d on the Sound, because of complaints about the service.

Glekas is “a restaurateur, caterer, and entertaining expert with over two decades of professional experience in the Tri-State area,” according to her company website.

In addition to catering events and operating several event spaces, the company runs four restaurants and bars at Stamford’s Chelsea Piers, as well as the summertime Beach Grill concession on Weed Beach in Darien.

“Nikki lives in Westport with her husband, their four children, and her adorable canine sidekick, Bentley,” the website says.

The four-year lease would run through  Nov. 15, 2029, with an option for the town to extend it another two years, according to a draft lease on the Planning & Zoning page. Christie said the agreement may be further revised. If it is, the latest version would be posted before the Board of Finance meeting on Monday, he said.

Under the draft agreement, the vendor would pay monthly rent of $8,333 for the first year, $9,166 for the second year and $10,000 for the following two years. A final rent payment of $5,000 would cover the 15 days in November.

The agreement allows the vendor to deliver food and beverages with golf carts, and to operate a “roaming golf cart” to make  “impromptu in-person sales” on the golf course.

The vendor also would be able to sell alcoholic beverages at the Halfway House and from the Roaming Cart, a departure from past years’ policy that the Board of Selectmen approved in February.

The meetings to consider the agreement are as follows:

Board of Finance

• Monday, May 11 at 8 p.m. via Zoom

The board will hold a special meeting to make recommendations on the contract, which the town charter requires on any lease of the town’s real property.

Public comments may be submitted to: BOFcomments@westportct.gov.

Planning & Zoning Commission

• Wednesday, May 13 at 6 p.m. via Zoom

The commission reviews lease proposals for consistency with planning and zoning considerations.

Public comments may be submitted to PandZ@westportct.gov by noon on the day of the meeting if intended to be distributed to the board members before the meeting. 

Board of Selectmen

• Thursday, May 21  at 2 p.m.Town Hall Auditorium, 110 Myrtle Ave., Westport.

By state law, the Board of Selectmen, which approves all contracts, must allow at least 10 days’ notice before approving a lease, Christie said.

The meeting agenda will be published on the Town’s website under “Meeting List and Calendar”

Public comments may be submitted to: selectman@westportct.gov

Additional meeting materials, Zoom links, agendas, and updates will be posted on the Town of Westport website under “Meeting List and Calendar”.

Ken Valenti

^{_{A career journalist and lifelong resident of the New York City region, Ken Valenti has enjoyed decades of reporting local, regional and national news in New York and Connecticut. Topics of special interest are development, the environment, Long Island Sound and transportation. When not reporting, he’s always on the lookout for the perfect coffee shop or used book sale.}}